The New York Open of Tennis has returned once again to the Nassau Coliseum and with it comes the stars. Under the stewardship of tournament director Peter Lebedevs, this annual pro tournament has now become a must-see event for tennis fans on Long Island and is like being witness to the arrival of the Greek gods from Mount Olympus.
I have become a part of this event thanks to my participation as a panelist at the New York Tennis Expo which kicks off the week of tennis at the Coliseum.
When you learn about a professional sport from the inside you inevitably come away with a deeper respect for those in the “research and development” game. As a golf writer, I have sat in on many a seminar put on by golf companies and have always been amazed at how much effort is put into equipment advancement. As a sport psychologist, I have always thought that if my field put as much effort into solving the riddles of the mind that Ping puts into solving the riddles of the golf club that we all would be well on our way to finding the true keys to winning.
Technology advancement in tennis is amazing. Let’s take the court surface as a seemingly simple and benign example. The courts at the Nassau Coliseum are advertised as the “black courts.”
The moment I stepped onto these famous “black courts” was a moment of deep learning. It was like I was walking on a surface that I could never slip on if I tried. The grip on my shoes was almost like I was magnetized to the court. This is the result of decades-long research and development of the tennis court.
Later that day I ran into two exhibitors representing Har-Tru tennis courts and I asked them about the courts. They explained that the courts had an under layer of wood, then a synthetic surface that was then treated with some kind of paint/sand comb. The result was a fabulous feel for the legs and feet.
They also told me that Nike sneaker technology was demolishing records in track and field. Something about the way they now make rubber.
There is now a crisis in golf where driver technology was allowing pros to hit the ball so far that golf courses were becoming obsolete. This is a highly problematic issue because there is little room to expand golf courses and the cost of doing so is prohibitive.
I asked tennis pro-athlete Alex Pop-Moldovan if tennis was facing a similar crisis and not to my surprise he told me that speed in tennis was now becoming a problem thanks to fitness, the ball, and the racket. The speed decreased the number of rallies that took place and this had an impact on the very nature of a tennis match.
Later on in the day, I went to visit Gilad Bloom at his booth. Gilad is a multi-talented former ATP tour star during the 1990s and he now runs his own academy in Riverdale and Throgs Neck.
He also is a musician and a gifted writer. He was not there when I arrived but Jared Friedberg told me about the advances in racket technology by the German-based Volkl tennis racket company, which has produced a racket that is more body friendly while increasing the speed.
During my panel talk, I sat next to the ever generous Nick Bollettieri who coached the likes of Andre Agassi and Monica Seles. Bollettieri, claims to be 89, but looks more like 49 and is a man packed full of irrepressible wisdom. One of the many gems he mentioned was to always take advantage of every opportunity given to you.
There were also two topped ranks pros on the panel, Tommy Paul and Brayden Schnur, who looked like they had been fathered by Zeus himself.
Indeed, the Greek gods of tennis are in town for the week. If you are a tennis buff I would recommend you get yourself to the Nassau Coliseum this week to enjoy some of the glory that is modern tennis. And you don’t have to be Odysseus pleading with the gods to get you there. All you need to do is to brave the traffic on the Meadowbrook Parkway in order to see these giants perform.
